Characterisation of Polymers Using Gel Permeation Chromatography and Associated Techniques

Gel permeation chromatography (GPC), also known as size exclusion chromatography (SEC) is a technique for obtaining information on the molecular weight distributions of polymers. After polymer type (chemical composition), the molecular weight distribution is the next most fundamental property and this will determine if a particular material is well suited to any given application. In crude terms, the higher the molecular weight, the stronger and more resilient a polymer material is likely to be, but also the harder it will be to process. This can be much more complicated with either extreme of the molecular weight distribution potentially contributing significantly to the properties of the material.